| 1 | 1 | | 85R8197 MEW-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Bohac H.B. No. 1592 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the punishment of certain assaults committed against |
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| 8 | 8 | | employees of primary and secondary schools. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 22.01, Penal Code, is amended by |
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| 11 | 11 | | amending Subsections (b) and (d) and adding Subsections (d-1) and |
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| 12 | 12 | | (d-2) to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (b) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) is a Class A |
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| 14 | 14 | | misdemeanor, except that the offense is a felony of the third degree |
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| 15 | 15 | | if the offense is committed against: |
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| 16 | 16 | | (1) a person the actor knows is a public servant while |
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| 17 | 17 | | the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty, or in |
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| 18 | 18 | | retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or |
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| 19 | 19 | | performance of an official duty as a public servant; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (2) a person whose relationship to or association with |
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| 21 | 21 | | the defendant is described by Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or |
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| 22 | 22 | | 71.005, Family Code, if: |
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| 23 | 23 | | (A) it is shown on the trial of the offense that |
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| 24 | 24 | | the defendant has been previously convicted of an offense under |
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| 25 | 25 | | this chapter, Chapter 19, or Section 20.03, 20.04, 21.11, or 25.11 |
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| 26 | 26 | | against a person whose relationship to or association with the |
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| 27 | 27 | | defendant is described by Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, |
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| 28 | 28 | | Family Code; or |
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| 29 | 29 | | (B) the offense is committed by intentionally, |
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| 30 | 30 | | knowingly, or recklessly impeding the normal breathing or |
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| 31 | 31 | | circulation of the blood of the person by applying pressure to the |
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| 32 | 32 | | person's throat or neck or by blocking the person's nose or mouth; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (3) a person who contracts with government to perform |
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| 34 | 34 | | a service in a facility as defined by Section 1.07(a)(14), Penal |
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| 35 | 35 | | Code, or Section 51.02(13) or (14), Family Code, or an employee of |
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| 36 | 36 | | that person: |
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| 37 | 37 | | (A) while the person or employee is engaged in |
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| 38 | 38 | | performing a service within the scope of the contract, if the actor |
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| 39 | 39 | | knows the person or employee is authorized by government to provide |
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| 40 | 40 | | the service; or |
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| 41 | 41 | | (B) in retaliation for or on account of the |
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| 42 | 42 | | person's or employee's performance of a service within the scope of |
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| 43 | 43 | | the contract; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (4) a person the actor knows is a security officer |
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| 45 | 45 | | while the officer is performing a duty as a security officer; [or] |
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| 46 | 46 | | (5) a person the actor knows is emergency services |
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| 47 | 47 | | personnel while the person is providing emergency services; or |
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| 48 | 48 | | (6) an employee of a private or public primary or |
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| 49 | 49 | | secondary school, including an open-enrollment charter school: |
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| 50 | 50 | | (A) while the employee is engaged in performing |
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| 51 | 51 | | duties within the scope of employment; or |
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| 52 | 52 | | (B) in retaliation for or on account of the |
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| 53 | 53 | | employee's performance of a duty within the scope of employment. |
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| 54 | 54 | | (d) For purposes of Subsections (b)(1), (4), and (5) |
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| 55 | 55 | | [Subsection (b)], the actor is presumed to have known the person |
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| 56 | 56 | | assaulted was a public servant, a security officer, or emergency |
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| 57 | 57 | | services personnel if the person was wearing a distinctive uniform |
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| 58 | 58 | | or badge indicating the person's employment as a public servant or |
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| 59 | 59 | | status as a security officer or emergency services personnel. For |
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| 60 | 60 | | purposes of Subsection (b)(6), the actor is presumed to have known |
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| 61 | 61 | | that the person assaulted was a school employee if the actor was a |
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| 62 | 62 | | student enrolled in, or the parent or guardian of a student enrolled |
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| 63 | 63 | | in, the school that employed the person assaulted. |
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| 64 | 64 | | (d-1) The increase in punishment provided by Subsection |
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| 65 | 65 | | (b)(6) applies regardless of whether the offense occurred: |
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| 66 | 66 | | (1) off school premises; or |
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| 67 | 67 | | (2) at a time at which school was not in session. |
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| 68 | 68 | | (d-2) The increase in punishment provided by Subsection |
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| 69 | 69 | | (b)(6) does not apply if the actor is a student enrolled in a |
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| 70 | 70 | | special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education |
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| 71 | 71 | | Code. |
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| 72 | 72 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 73 | 73 | | to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 74 | 74 | | An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 75 | 75 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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| 76 | 76 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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| 77 | 77 | | purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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| 78 | 78 | | effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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| 79 | 79 | | before that date. |
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| 80 | 80 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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